A year 9 pupil from Poynton High School has won a local interschool cookery competition.
Organised by Chartwells, a leading school and education catering company, the competition saw Tilda face off against three year 9 – 10 pupils, one from Poynton and two from Glossopdale School, Derbyshire.
Each pupil was tasked with creating two portions of a main course in an hour, all within a budget of £5.
Dishes were scored by a panel of industry experts including Chartwells chefs, along with the previous winner, Year 11 Poynton pupil Millie Jo Lomax, on technical skill, cleanliness, creativity, presentation, taste, and sustainability.
After a close competition, Tilda took home the trophy for her healthy vegetarian lasagne, which included homemade fresh pasta, garlic bread, and béchamel sauce.
Tilda and the other pupils secured their place in the interschool competition having developed a passion for cooking and nutrition through Chartwells’ Junior Culinary Skills programme – a free one-week course held at both schools, which teaches pupils key chef skills.
Chartwells’ expert team of chefs, including Stephen Woodward, regional development chef at Chartwells, mentored pupils through courses on knifework, nutrition and sustainability, with the aim to help inspire pupils and nurture the next generation of chefs.
Tilda (pictured) will now compete in the local heat of national competition Springboard FutureChef in October. As the biggest school culinary competition in the UK, Springboard FutureChef celebrates talented junior chefs whilst inspiring young people to pursue a career within the world of hospitality.
Tilda said: “I’ve enjoyed learning to make all the food with my friends. It was difficult to make everything in the time limit, but I had a lot of fun making my vegetarian lasagne with homemade butter and homemade garlic bread.”
Katie Mottram, Food Technology teacher at Poynton High School, said: “We’re so grateful to Chartwells for running this fantastic competition. Junior Culinary Skills has been so popular with pupils this year that we had to do a lucky dip to decide who would get to take part.
“It’s amazing to see the progress that pupils have made throughout Junior Culinary Skills – I’m so proud to see the skills they’ve learned shine through in the dishes they’ve made. They’re really excited about cooking now and it’s given them an insight into the kind of careers they could pursue in the future.”
Stephen Woodward, regional development chef at Chartwells, said: “At Chartwells, we’re passionate about nurturing new talent and inspiring the next generation of chefs in the local communities we serve. Tilda has shown such an incredible passion for food, and we’re delighted that our Junior Culinary Skills programme helped her to develop the skills to triumph at the interschool competition. I look forward to cheering her on at the Springboard FutureChef local final.”
